Composed for Rogation Sunday, which fell on May 13, 1725, Bach's Cantata No. 87 "Bischer habt ihr nichts gebeten in meinem Namen" (Until now you have asked for nothing in my name) (BWV 87) sets a text by Marianne von Ziegler based on verses from John 16, 24, 16, and 33 and concludes with Heinrich Muller's 1619 chorale Selig ist die Seele (Blessed is the soul) based on the familiar Jesu, meine Freude melody. Bach takes Ziegler's grimly masochistic text—"fill our soul and spirit with fear," "Though our guilt rises up to heaven," "I will suffer" are typical sentiments—and sets it to some of his darkest music. The cantata is scored for bass, alto and tenor soloists, chorus, a pair of oboes, oboe de caccia, strings, and basso continuo. "Bischer habt ihr nichts gebeten in meinem Namen" is in Bach's favorite, bleak tonality of D minor, a tonality that it is apparently loathe to surrender since it's first, third, fifth, and seventh movements are in the tonic; its second is in the subdominant of G minor; its fourth is in C minor, and only its sixth is in a major key, the relative major of B flat major. The first movement is an elaborately embellished aria for bass soloist with full orchestra. The second movement is a very brief secco recitative for alto and continuo. The third movement is a doleful da capo aria for alto soloists with a pair of dark-toned oboe da caccias above the organ continuo. The fourth movement is a tenor recitative accompanied by piano, strings, and continuo. The fifth movement is an extremely austere bass aria accompanied only by continuo. The sixth movement is a consoling aria for bass in 12/8 time, with a gracious string accompaniment above a sustained continuo. "Bischer habt ihr nichts gebeten in meinem Namen" concludes with a harmonization of the Jesu, meine Freude tune with Muller's text for the entire chorus and orchestra.

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